Up today in the lovely @hexliterary hexliterary.com

Farmers have figured out that the cheapest pesticide is a strip of flowers. When you plant wildflowers through a crop field, not just around the edge but in strips running through the middle, you get ladybugs, lacewings, hoverflies, and parasitic wasps living in the field instead of visiting it. They eat the aphids, the caterpillars, and the mites for free, all summer long. In controlled trials, fields with tailored flower strips had leaf-beetle numbers 40 to 50% lower and crop damage cut by around 60%, enough to drop below the threshold where spraying was even considered worth it. The flowers attract a standing army to our fields. We spent decades engineering chemicals to kill the insects eating the crop, when the insects that eat those insects would have worked for the price of seed.

We could all use a moment of calm. Here are a few moments in the sights and sounds of a forest. Protect people and the planet. #ActOnClimate #nature

WATCH: Researchers at Stanford University modeled how many people could die or be disabled in 25 years if vaccines for polio, measles, rubella or diphtheria were no longer available. We illustrated their findings. Read more: propub.li/4cBGdRE

New UK screen time rules just dropped — and they’re stricter than most parents expected. From 27 March 2026, England says: zero solo screens for under-2s (except quick video calls with family), and max one hour a day for 2–5 year olds — no screens at meals or the hour before bed. Co-view everything, stick to slow-paced content, and ditch fast social-media clips and AI toys completely. The science is sobering: toddlers’ brains process info up to 10 times slower than adults. Fast-paced screens push them into fight-or-flight mode — racing heart, surging energy — while they’re sitting still. Researchers at the University of East London say this mismatch can wire kids for more tantrums and emotional struggles later. Using screens to calm meltdowns? It often backfires long-term. As a parent, it’s brutal — we all know that explosion the second you take the tablet away. But this feels like evidence finally catching up with what our gut has been telling us. How are you handling screens with little ones — strict limits, co-viewing, or mostly winging it?

In 3 yrs this #solar installation at an Arkansas high school turned the district’s budget from a $250K deficit to a $1.8 million surplus. They're using the surplus to pay teachers more We have the solutions. Implement them. #ActOnClimate #ClimateAction #climate #NoWarNoWarming

If we switched to #renewableenergy, the number of ships crossing the ocean would fall by 40% because they're just carrying coal & oil & gas!! buff.ly/dpTrSpO We have the solutions. Implement them. #ActOnClimate #ClimateAction #climate #energy #GreenNewDeal

“French parking lots could soon generate as much electricity as 10 nuclear power plants” buff.ly/cb83Fus We have so many solutions. Stop the delays and implement them. #ActOnClimate #climate #energy #renewables #GreenNewDeal

Less than 5 hours left to submit to Stanchion's first themed issue. Let's make beautiful music together. Stanchionzine.com/submission…

You might’ve heard that Sen @BasedMikeLee is attempting to sell up to 3 million acres of public land and open the door for 250 million more to be sold off later. What you might not know: This is not a one-off. It’s a long game - and he’s been playing it for years. 🧵

Procrastination is not a time management problem. It’s an emotion management problem. You’re not avoiding work. You’re avoiding tasks that feel boring, frustrating, or stressful. Postponing prolongs pain. The dread of starting is quickly outweighed by the joy of progressing.

“I am carrying your absence like a wet briefcase. I am running under stars who know nothing about the light they are no longer.” From “Future-Perfect” by Derek Chan in ISSUE 24! buff.ly/40bMu1J

Thank you @ZoeticPress for including "Every summer my cats go wild." in this beautiful issue on Rituals Every day, we do the same things over and over without a thought. Some are nothing more than habit, but ... zoeticpress.com/branded-merc…

Plorkology 2025 submissions are NOW OPEN! We are looking for poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and art! ✍️ Subs ends February 7th so get your work in. We would love to read it! plorkpress.wordpress.com/sub… #writingcommunity #litmags #opensubs #callforwriters #callforwriters

I just received the best kind of rejection from @bullmagazine, the kind that made me laugh out loud so go submit there and maybe you too will have that pleasure

PLEASE SHARE: Library of Michigan seeks yearbooks to build its collection michiganadvance.com/briefs/l… via @michiganadvance @mieducation @LibraryofMich

New fiction up today! Thanks @MaudlinHouse Fireside Chat maudlinhouse.net/fireside-ch… via @maudlinhouse

We recognize publicly-accessible, protected old-growth forests in the US. Have a forest in mind? Nominate it on our website: oldgrowthforest.net/nominate… Want to help us search for one in your area? Sign up as a county coordinator here: oldgrowthforest.net/county-c…